Chinese couple sustained 'frenzied attack'

Police investigating the murder of a Chinese couple in Newcastle have said the pair sustained a vicious and frenzied attack.

Xi Zhou and her boyfriend Zhen Xing Yang, both 25, were found with severe head injuries at a flat in Newcastle's West End on Saturday afternoon.

Northumbria Police said a post-mortem examination revealed the female victim may have been suffocated as well.

Detective Superintendent Steve Wade said: "We have no known motive for this savage and brutal attack."

He said both suffered defence wounds, but he would not say if the killer tied them up or if there was a sexual element to the murders.

He said the murderer must have been covered in blood after the attack: "It was a vicious attack, there was a lot of blood and I think in any interpretation that was a frenzied attack".

He said his message to the killer, or killers was simple: "We will work around the clock to catch those responsible.

Friends of the couple made the gruesome discovery at the ground floor flat.

Mr Wade said: "Unable to get an answer at the address the friend and former tenant gained entry via an insecure downstairs rear window, before unlocking the back door allowing all three inside."

He said Ms Zhou's relatives have been traced to the province of Hunan in South China, with the help of relatives in the UK.

He also paid tribute to the "hard working" couple who graduated from Newcastle University.

Mr Wade said: "They were two nice hard working respectable people who have come to the UK for the best of reasons, to get a good education."

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